October the 1st, 2020 - It's rare to read anything about the coronavirus pandemic bringing positive results to anyone or anything, but it does happen, and not only to companies who make masks. The Neretva Valley, famous for its abundance of fruit which can be seen sold all over the country on stands and in various stories in the colder months, has done very well indeed and is expecting a great harvest season this year.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 30th of September, 2020, mandarin oranges are the only Croatian export fruit, whose harvest officially begins during the last days of September as autumn overtakes summer. While the Neretva Valley's fruit growers are anxiously awaiting the harvest season, which will take place under unprecedented epidemiological conditions, it seems that the coronavirus could actually go hand in hand with them as opposed to against them, as has been the case with just about every other field imaginable.
Namely, higher demand is expected for the Neretva Valley's fruit, as it is packed full of vitamin C, which is traditionally used to strengthen immunity and remain healthy, writes Slobodna Dalmacija. As such, the Neretva Valley's many fruit growers hope to be able to sell their mandarin oranges just as well, if not better, than in previous years.
However, in Croatia, it has been proven time and time again that nothing is ever particularly certain when it comes to agriculture, because every year imports destroy domestic production during the traditional season of harvesting homegrown fruit and vegetables. Owing to that, it’s hard to assume that in the case of the Neretva Valley's mandarin oranges, the scenario from May will be repeated, when domestic strawberry growers sold their strawberries and still made good money because there were no imports due to the coronavirus and the restrictions that came as a result of it.
Initial estimates show that the Neretva Valley growers will have a production of about 32,000 tonnes of mandarin oranges this season, which is a mediocre crop, but good quality is expected regardless.
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